In 1969, the first public health laws related to smoking were passed. Since the report was issued, the American smoking rate has halved. But the message of the report — and the response to it — was very much of its time, as the Dallas/Ft. Worth Healthcare Daily notes:

It is hard to believe a government report could have that kind of impact today. Americans’ trust in the federal government has plummeted from 68 percent during the Kennedy and Johnson administrations to 22 percent during President Obama’s first term.